Green Revolution Essay Example for Free

Green Revolution Essay Interaction between humans and the environment has always had a great importance in the development of humankind; according to Marx, what differentiates humans from other animals is the fact that humans can transform their surroundings to suit their needs, through labor. The Green Revolution is not the exception to that. In times of need the human being manipulated its environment to be suitable for its development, however, the question lingers, how efficient was it, how positive? The Green Revolution, from 1945 to the present, was motivated by the need to increase the production of food to supply for the increasing demand as population grew, to promote national self-sustainability in terms of food. However, during that period the effect of the Revolution have been detrimental to the environment and society: they have damaged agricultural diversity and heritage, damaged the lands, and put at risk food security; also, they have widened the gap between the very rich and the very poor, monopolizing the food industry. The Green Revolution originated after an urgent need to promote food security with a growing trend in global population, as a way to promote self-sustainability and independence. As it is clear in the report given by the Food and Agriculture Organization (DOC 2), in the period ranging from around 1929 (great depression) and 1945 (end of World War II) the global food supply index was below the world population. What this means is that there was literally not enough food being produced world wide to feed the world population. This struggle of human kind to stay afloat in supplying the minimum needs for survival meant that a change needed to occur. The answer, as Dr. Norman Borlaug stated in his Nobel Lecture (DOC 4) was not simply planting more in the developing nations, since the lands in those areas were â€Å"tired, worn out, depleted of plant nutrients†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Clearly, what the document refers is that a new, more effective way of growing food had to be developed. In fact, Dr.Borlaug states that the priority of the developments of the green revolution concentrated in the millions that were lurked by hunger, a large problematic that clearly was under the spotlight. As a proof that the world was prioritizing the deficient food supply is the statement given by President Harry Truman (DOC 3). President Truman was the leader of the most powerful nation in the world at the time, the one with the largest technological developments, and his word was the one that would set the course of the world. This particular speech is vital, since it is the inaugural speech, where he was to set the priorities of the government and address the world with what the United States had as a course for the future. In this speech, he clearly refers to the shocking figure that â€Å"more than half the people of the world are living in conditions approaching misery† and says that the United States will help provide â€Å"technical knowledge†¦ to produce more food† In the speech President Truman refers often to liberty, thus meaning that self-sustainability will provide freedom. This speech is the perfect example, the jewel of the trend that the world was seeing with regard to prioritizing food. The mention of â€Å"technical knowledge† is vital in the construction of the green revolution as a response to the lack of food, with technological developments in the agricultural field. Some have said that the Green Revolution has been a success in improving the food industry, and improving living conditions for everyone; nevertheless the numbers today reflect a mediocre success. Indian minister for food and agriculture (1964-1967) states in an interview (DOC 5) that the farmers of the state of Punjab competed to use the technology that was introduced by the green revolution the best. It is stated with a positive connotation, as to refer to the great feats of Punjab. This seems very positive, however, the most likely reason for this to have occurred is the fact that multinational corporations were kicking them out of the market and they were forced into utilizing the technology that those same corporations were imposing on them. If this were true, which it most likely is, as it has happened in many places around the world, it would discredit the great success that the Green Revolution supposedly is. Furthermore, the claim is that the Green Revolution has brought prosperity, however, to whom, to the ones that were rich already? A perfect example of this negative impact of the Green Revolution is the conversation between Mrs. Dula and the United Nations official (DOC 6), which gives a not very realistic perspective of the impact of the green Revolution and is concentrated exclusively in the sector of the very rich. This document is indeed quite revealing, as the speaker is an aristocratic woman of Mexico, probably a housewife who sees the world through the optic of his husband, a man who earns a salary if the revolution which he works for is successful; in fact, she is most likely part of one of the clubs she talks about herself. The occasion of this statement is a simple conversation with a UN official, probably at some sort of a social event, where the high class is all joined together, with perfectly slanted people who are not really analyzing the global impact of the Green Revolution. This document gives a crystal clear proof of how much the Green Revolution has made the â€Å"rich Mexican farmers† richer probably at the expense of making the poor laborers, poorer, however, this document presents only one, very bright point of view to sell the revolution. With regards to India once again, socially, they sell the idea of improvement, like in the report of the State of Punjab (DOC 9) where it says that the Green Revolution has seen with it the â€Å"emergence of middle and rich peasants† a very undesirable euphemism to conceal the actual situation. This document seems to give a perspective of social growth and development, of a population going for education, yet once again, it seems very idealistic in its tone, when in reality India has totally different conditions. With regards to that, India has one of the largest Gini index’s in the world, meaning a huge social inequality, and has one of the smallest middle classes in the world, which has diminished even more throughout the years, meaning that in reality, India may have had a somewhat positive year, but the general trend is of a very pronounced downturn in social progress, all related to the Green Revolution which is destroying the small farmers. The Green Revolution, in truth has brought more ill than it has brought good, in the environmental and social aspects. Regarding environmental harm, the FAO Wheat Yield report (DOC 1) is very good in demonstrating the introduction of massive scale crops that the Green Revolution brings forth with it. The introduction of these crops damages the lands since they are not prone to such production. The graphs show that in both Mexico and India the crop yields were extremely irregular, and as time passed they have become even more, this is due to the fact that they are not proper to those areas and its planting is something totally synthetic and with complete disrespect towards the natural balance. The article by Dr. Vandana Shiva (DOC 8) reveals how much damage the crops, especially Genetically Modified Organisms; do to the land they are planted in. The â€Å"reduced genetic diversity, increased vulnerability to pests, soil erosion, water shortages†¦Ã¢â‚¬  are effect that will leave marked the land for a long time, as Dr. Shiva states, and are a threat to future generations, which will have totally barren land where it will be impossible to plant food. Dr. Shiva also refers to the social problematic that the Green Revolution is planting alongside its seeds. For instance the fight for water to provide irrigation, previously not needed in India, has lead to â€Å"conflict and violence† and as it has become a worldwide trend, the career for water dominance is â€Å"leading to both local and interstate water conflicts. † This clearly shows how disadvantageous the spread of the Green Revolution has been, since it has brought unmeasured changes that have not been made responsibly, but rather abruptly, causing enormous damage. Dr. Shiva is an Indian Physicist, and being from India she probably has had a very direct contact with the Green Revolution, considering that one of its birthplaces was in fact the State of Punjab. In this occasion she is writing for the Ecologist magazine, a publication read by people with primary interest in the environmental issues, including organization leaders and maybe politicians who will probably get concerned, especially due to the tone of annoyance and hatred that she employs in the article. Expanding on social implications, the Guatemalan National Coordinating Committee of Indigenous peasants (DOC 10) gives a different perspective. Although it may sound somewhat as mysticism from indigenous people, saying that they have contaminated the seeds is not a joke, considering the hormones that can be found in GMO plantations. This also acknowledges a vital issue, the loss of diversity and heritage that society is killing with the systematic Green Revolution trends, like the Mayan traditions, which have been present for â€Å"five thousand years. Furthermore, the social disaster does not stop there, but stumbles over women, which according to the FAO Newsletter (DOC 7) have been forced to change their job. In this case the implications have made woman, traditionally in other roles, have even less opportunities to succeed, as the increased need for cash income made the woman be forced to work. This implies a social catastrophe since it denies the right of woman to equal opportunities, which are stripped off with the Green Revolution, which makes them simply one more laborer forced to work. Additional to the information presented in the documents it would be vital to contain the point of view of a small scale male farmer that has to compete with the multinational corporations, which have been installed after the start of the Green Revolution circa 1945. This would be important since it would show the first hand effects of the monopolies that the Green Revolution has brought, with regards to the social impact it has made, and whether that impact is positive or negative. As discussed throughout the essay, the Green Revolution, which has lasted from 1945 until the present day, was originated with a need to secure food production in a starving world. However its effects were not so positive, since today many starve, and the Green Revolution has damaged the environment and widened the gap between the social classes. The setup of crops that have give no benefit to the places in which they are grown, with complete disregard to the ecological balance that was being destroyed have caused issues ranging from soil erosion to water shortages and crops with pest vulnerability. The Green Revolution has also made the rich farmers richer at the cost of the poor being poorer, since the costs of the new technologies are not easily accessible, but the yields that they provide take the small farmers out of business. In general, although certain governments sponsor the Green Revolution and make it seem positive, it has brought about large changes in the way humans interact with the environment, with a generalized destruction of it to get short-term solutions to the problem of food shortages.

Male View of Hysteria Presented in The Yellow Wallpaper -- Charlotte P

Male View of Hysteria Presented in The Yellow Wallpaper      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Charlotte Perkins Gilman's short story "The Yellow Wallpaper" has been viewed as either a work of supernatural horror or as a feminist treatise regarding the role of women in society. A close analysis of Gilman's use of symbols reveals "The Yellow Wallpaper" as her response to the male view of hysteria from ancient times through the nineteenth century. " In "The Yellow Wallpaper" Gilman questions the validity of Hippocrates's theory of the wandering uterus and Weir Mitchell's "rest cure". As she wrote in her essay "Why I Wrote the Yellow Wallpaper?", "[the story] was not intended to drive people crazy, but to save people from being driven crazy†¦" (107). By her own account, Gilman's purpose in writing "The Yellow Wallpaper" was to educate and inform the public of the misinterpretation of hysterical symptoms. The origin of the word hysteria expresses the belief in the inferiority of women. As James Palis writes in The Hippocratic Concept of Hysteria: A Translation of the Original Texts: "Etymologically, the term usteria (hysteria) derives from ustera (hystera), the Greek word for uterus, which means an inferior position. Thus, usteria denotes suffering of the uterus, the most inferior organ in the female" (226). The fact that the literal translation of hystera is "inferior position" reinforces the fact that from ancient times women were viewed as physically inferior to men. Since the one major physical difference between women and men is the presence of the uterus, psychological problems that were considered to be strictly female were attributed to some malfunction of the uterus. Hippocrates first proposed in his work "The Art of Healing"that hysteria wa... .... ---. "The Yellow Wallpaper". American Realism Reader. Ed. James Nagel and Tom Quirk. New York: Penguin Books, 1997. 254-269. Hothersall, David. History of Psychology. 3rd Ed. New York: McGraw-Hill Inc., 1995. Meyer, Cheryl L. The Wandering Uterus: Politics and the Reproductive Rights of Women. New York: New York University Press, 1997. Mitchell, S. Weir. "Fat and Blood": The Yellow Wallpaper. Women Writers: Texts and Contexts. Ed. Thomas L. Erskine and Connie L. Richards. New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1993. 105-109. ---. "Wear and Tear". The Yellow Wallpaper. Women Writers: Texts and Contexts. Ed. Thomas L Erksine and Connie L. Richards. New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1993. 109-111. Palis, James., et al. "The Hippocratic Concept of Hysteria: A Translation of the Original Texts." Integrative Psychiatry 3.3 (1985): 226-228.    Male View of Hysteria Presented in The Yellow Wallpaper -- Charlotte P Male View of Hysteria Presented in The Yellow Wallpaper      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Charlotte Perkins Gilman's short story "The Yellow Wallpaper" has been viewed as either a work of supernatural horror or as a feminist treatise regarding the role of women in society. A close analysis of Gilman's use of symbols reveals "The Yellow Wallpaper" as her response to the male view of hysteria from ancient times through the nineteenth century. " In "The Yellow Wallpaper" Gilman questions the validity of Hippocrates's theory of the wandering uterus and Weir Mitchell's "rest cure". As she wrote in her essay "Why I Wrote the Yellow Wallpaper?", "[the story] was not intended to drive people crazy, but to save people from being driven crazy†¦" (107). By her own account, Gilman's purpose in writing "The Yellow Wallpaper" was to educate and inform the public of the misinterpretation of hysterical symptoms. The origin of the word hysteria expresses the belief in the inferiority of women. As James Palis writes in The Hippocratic Concept of Hysteria: A Translation of the Original Texts: "Etymologically, the term usteria (hysteria) derives from ustera (hystera), the Greek word for uterus, which means an inferior position. Thus, usteria denotes suffering of the uterus, the most inferior organ in the female" (226). The fact that the literal translation of hystera is "inferior position" reinforces the fact that from ancient times women were viewed as physically inferior to men. Since the one major physical difference between women and men is the presence of the uterus, psychological problems that were considered to be strictly female were attributed to some malfunction of the uterus. Hippocrates first proposed in his work "The Art of Healing"that hysteria wa... .... ---. "The Yellow Wallpaper". American Realism Reader. Ed. James Nagel and Tom Quirk. New York: Penguin Books, 1997. 254-269. Hothersall, David. History of Psychology. 3rd Ed. New York: McGraw-Hill Inc., 1995. Meyer, Cheryl L. The Wandering Uterus: Politics and the Reproductive Rights of Women. New York: New York University Press, 1997. Mitchell, S. Weir. "Fat and Blood": The Yellow Wallpaper. Women Writers: Texts and Contexts. Ed. Thomas L. Erskine and Connie L. Richards. New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1993. 105-109. ---. "Wear and Tear". The Yellow Wallpaper. Women Writers: Texts and Contexts. Ed. Thomas L Erksine and Connie L. Richards. New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1993. 109-111. Palis, James., et al. "The Hippocratic Concept of Hysteria: A Translation of the Original Texts." Integrative Psychiatry 3.3 (1985): 226-228.   

Study Plan for Chemical Engineering

Chemical Engineering and its importance Advertisements Chemical engineering has a number of applications in our day to day lives. This course is offered to students at the graduate and postgraduate levels. Upon the accomplishment of their studies, individuals can apply for jobs with firms of the private or public sector firms. Placement opportunities are available for aspirants within some of the prestigious Indian firms such as Reliance and Indian Oil etc. One can say that this sector is one of the many areas where one can get good jobs as well as other opportunities of the right type.In this article we are going to discuss about the importance of chemical engineering as well as its numerous applications. Importance of Chemical Engineering Areas where chemical engineering is applicable in our day to day lives include: Coal preparation and mineral processing Explosives manufacturing Fertilizer industry Food processing Glass and specialty chemicals Paints Steel and aluminum production In addition to the above mentioned areas, chemical engineering also has applications in production of electronics, clothing, paper and photographic equipment etc.The scope for individuals in the field of chemical engineering is bound to grow in time. This is mainly because of industrial growth as well as the related scarcity of the resources those are required. In future years, chemical engineers will be needed to develop synthetic replacement for those resources as well as materials that are low in supply. In overall, it can be said that chemical engineers will be able to make very crucial contributions to the improvement in addition to the maintenance of the quality of our lives.Areas where one can apply his knowledge: Although chemical engineering is relatively a new field, this field of engineering has shown a speedy expansion during the last few decades. This has in turn led to rise in importance of chemical engineering as well as the number of jobs. Career opportunities for t hese professionals are available with R&D departments, especially in the field of energy as well in developing fields such as nanotechnology and biotechnology. Chemical Plants Petrochemical Plants Pharmaceuticals Petroleum Refining PlantsMineral Based Industries Electronics Industry Photographic Equipment Units Clothing Units Pulp and Paper Manufacturing Aircraft Industry Some Job Types Supervisor Technical Specialist Project Manager Project Engineer Teacher Researcher Environmental, Safety & Regulatory Manager Quality Manager Senior Process Engineer Product Development Engineer Fuel Meter Calibration Technician In the government sector, chemical engineers can find jobs in areas where solutions for environmental problems like recycling, water treatment and others are needed.They can also get work with departments of energy conservation as well as with defense establishments. Sir William Wakeham on the Importance of Chemical Engineering Sep. 06, 2011 Sir William Wakeham, President, I ChemE Sir William Wakeham, President, IChemE more Sir William Wakeham, President, IChemE From Reliance Industries’ Mukesh Ambani to stand-up comedian and perpetual watermelon smasher †¦ A Wide Range – From Reliance Industries' Mukesh Ambani and SABIC's Mohammed al-Mady to stand-up comedian and perpetual watermelon smasher Gallagher, chemical engineers can be found in almost every walk of life. And if you have never heard of Gallagher, you can replace him with Dolph Lundgren, who forewent a career in chemical engineering when he found success as Ivan Drago in the movie Rocky IV). These days, chemical engineering is as diverse as the people who study it, covering areas from biotechnology to mineral processing, and its significance for the chemical industry is now more important than ever. Sir William Wakeham is currently president of the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE), a global professional membership organization for people who have an interest in and r elevant experience in chemical engineering.He spoke with Brandi Schuster on how the field has evolved, what IChemE does to encourage students to study chemical engineering and the importance of having chemical engineers in all levels within chemical and pharmaceutical companies. CHEManager Europe: Sir William, the term â€Å"chemical engineering† doesn't have quite the same meaning as maybe 50 years ago. How do you think the profession has evolved? Sir William Wakeham: These days there is much more of a focus on the word â€Å"process engineering† rather than â€Å"chemical engineering. Often the processes involved are still chemical, but they now encompass many more things than we thought about 50 years ago. These days you have trained chemical engineers working in many process applications that aren't necessarily within the traditional realm of the chemical industry. One example of that is within the pharmaceutical business, in formulation engineering. This consists of the construction of pills, which goes hand-in-hand with the drug formulations.That involves quite a lot of chemical engineering, but wouldn't have been thought of as such 50 years ago. It's a similar situation within the water industry. There is a lot of activity which could be considered process engineering, and probably most of the reactions, if there are any, are biological reactions. All in all, I think the term has been broaden quite a bit over the last several decades in order to include many more aspects and technologies. In fact, the term â€Å"chemical engineer† is probably being replaced by â€Å"process engineer. Is the future of chemical engineering one with a very broad base? Sir William Wakeham: Yes, and in my own experience, trained chemical or process engineers are the kinds of engineers who are most able to work with other disciplines, because they have already quite a breadth in their formation as engineers. That is not quite the same for, let's say, ci vil engineers whose chemistry training is quite limited. Process engineers have a unique opportunity to bring scientists and other engineers together.Most of the big problems that the world is facing are a bit like that; people have to be brought together from different areas. What about diversity within the profession, particularly when it comes to women? Sir William Wakeham: In the UK, total chemical engineering undergraduate numbers are the most positive for women's recruitment of any engineering discipline. In the UK, about 27% of chemical engineering students are women; this is certainly a step in the right direction. What kind of activities does IChemE have to encourage more people to study chemical engineering?Sir William Wakeham: We have an enormous focus on bringing people into chemical engineering courses; this has, at least in the UK, pushed the numbers through the roof. We are particularly interested in attracting women, and one of the key elements of doing that is havin g women on the staff of chemical engineering departments who do the recruitment. Here in the UK, most departments have a substantial number of women on their faculty. In other areas of the world, such as in the Middle East, there are some cultural issues that are additional difficulty.However, in Malaysia, where we are also active, there are a significant number of women studying chemical engineering now. Apart from its European offices, IChemE is also represented in Asia, Africa and Australasia. Do you work towards promoting chemical engineering for women in these parts of the world as well? Sir William Wakeham: Yes. We have been using our activities in the UK as a basis, but fine-tuning it for the different cultural backgrounds. Clearly what needs to be done in Malaysia is not the same thing as what needs to be one in the UK. Our offices in these areas are usually staffed by local people, which is important for creating an understanding of the country's needs. What is a chemical e ngineer's role in an oil and gas industry? 2 years ago Report Abuse Shape Shape Best Answer – Chosen by Voters This is a very broad question as chemical engineers (as in someone with a chemical engineering degree) can do many different engineering jobs in the oil and gas industry, but other engineers can do them as well.For example I know people with mechanical and chemical engineering degrees that are maintenance engineers with the same job responsibilities. The same goes for a drilling fluid engineer which could be held by people of varying background and technical degrees. A chemical engineer can be involved in all parts of the oil and gas industry from building the oil rigs, drilling the wells, pumping it out of the ground, transferring it through pipelines, separating in into usable chemicals in a refinery, and finally making petroleum based products in a chemical plant.Source(s): Chemical Engineer Where Do Chemical Engineers Fit into the Upstream Oil and Gas Industry? B y Katie Horner | Comments (8) Before working for an upstream oil company, I was under the impression that chemical engineers working in oil and gas belonged in pipeline and downstream operations. For those of you not in the industry, most large, integrated oil companies consist of an upstream organization and a downstream organization. The former focuses on exploration and production and the latter refines crude petroleum into usable products (gasoline, lubricants, etc. . Within upstream, processes and departments are often separated by subsurface work and surface facility work. Generally, most ChemE’s in upstream are found on the facility side, managing projects related to tanks, pumps, pipelines and separators. Pumping Unit in Bakersfield, Ca You may be asking, what about subsurface? And, can chemical engineers contribute to a traditionally petroleum engineering realm? The answer is, most definitely! A reservoir is essentially a large tank filled with porous media and reser voir fluids – oil, gas and water.In order to recover oil or gas from a reservoir, chemical engineering fundamentals such as fluid mechanics, thermodynamics and heat transfer must be understood and applied. Petroleum engineering is not an exact science. Precise reservoir boundaries are often unknown, PVT samples are few and far between, recovery mechanisms are sometimes unclear, and original and current oil in place is determined probabilistically. The fact is, it wouldn’t be economical to collect all of the data to make it an exact science.Without having all of the data, oil companies still have been successful in recovering resources thus far. However, we’ve picked the low hanging fruit when it comes to oil and gas resources and are moving toward environments with increased complexity – heavy oil, challenging shale plays, tight gas, deepwater exploration, etc. It’s often said that the best place to find oil is within currently or previously produc ing reservoirs. As we go back in and try to capture the residual oil, chemical engineering concepts will be critical in designing processes to recover these resources.Many oil or gas recovery mechanisms are well understood, such as waterfloods or gas cap expansion. Fortunately for our profession, there are areas, such as steam and polymer floods, that still need the keen eyes of engineers to model and optimize. As we attempt to tackle the current global energy challenges, oil and gas will continue to be a key factor in the equation. While the focus of many chemical engineering graduates is in alternative energy solutions, there are still plenty of opportunities for a chemical engineer to make an impact in the world of upstream oil and gas.

Comparing Creon And Nora From A Doll s House - 855 Words

Jocasta and Nora In ancient times and even in the twenty century women were diminished and discriminated; therefore; they always had to follow what their men said. Women would not have a credit card or even have the chance to take a loan without the consent of their husband. They had to be careful of things that could affect their image if they were from a high status. Sometimes women had to keep some things from their husbands, so they would not lose their husband’s trust. The crisis that Jocasta from Oedipus the King, and Nora from A Doll’s House, are going through is similar, as both keep a secret from their husbands which has a huge impact in their entire families. They confuse their own feelings or values with reality and mistakes feelings for ideas which causes a tragedy in their families. In the story of Oedipus the king at the beginning Jocasta does not have any idea of what her husband it is to her. Later on she finds out that her husband it is her own son w hom she throw away because when he is born a bad prophecy is giving to him. She tries to stop him when she realize it and she starts begging him, she tries to stop him. As an example, she says to him, â€Å"listen to me, I beg you: do not do this thing!†(Sophocles 1088) Also she says â€Å"you are fatally wrong! May you never learn who you are!† (Sophocles 1088), that gives us a clue, at that point she knows Oedipus is her own son and that the prophecy has already begin to happen in his life. The journalist AndersShow MoreRelated Comparing A Dolls House and Oedipus Rex Essay1672 Words   |  7 PagesComparing A Dolls House and Oedipus Rex Ibsens drama A Dolls House, serves as an example of the kind of issue-based drama that distinguishes Ibsen from many of his contemporaries. The plays dialogue is not poetic, but very naturalistic, and the characters are recognizable people. Given the sense of modernity which the play possesses it seems unusual to compare it to a Greek tragedy produced more than two-thousand years previously. On closer examination however, there